How bad have things gotten for K-1? The man who humiliated Shinya Aoki on New Year’s Eve, cross-dresser Yuichiro Nagashima, has announced his next career move. He’s entering professional wrestling.

He declared himself to be a new rival for Daichi Hashimoto, the 18-year old son of the late Shinya Hashimoto. Daichi made his pro-wrestling debut today in Tokyo at Ryogoku Kokugikan for ZERO-ONE’s 10th anniversary show. Daichi took on Masa Chono, one of the Three Musketeers. Keiji Mutoh appeared at the show to do commentary. Chono won in 13’38 with the STF.

After the match, Nagashima entered the ring and spoke on the arena microphone. He declared his intention of making his pro-wrestling debut on 5/5 at Korakuen Hall. He stated that he was impressed with Daichi’s rookie debut and that he would jump into the business as a rookie as well, setting the stage down the road for a future clash.

As for where things stand in Japan, the news of Sakakibara resurfacing amuses me. He’ll put on some shows behind the scenes (reportedly), but a turd is a turd no matter how much you try to polish it. Without TV money as the sugar daddy, this will struggle.